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Griffith's Valuation Moher Lodge
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Due to Ireland's record keeping system and the fire at the GPO
during their Civil War, learning more about P.E.'s early life has been a
challenge which I have yet to conquer.
But, I have had some success in developing his life after 1829 by my perusal of newspapers from the period.
Lucky for us, P.E. was a very civic minded person and, as such, garnered numerous mentions in the local papers over the last 43 years of his life.
In this post, we will present evidence of his career in Real Estate.
We were able to find several (20) real estate advertisements published by P.E during the period from 1834 until 1867.
It is through these adverts that his career, the locations of his business offices and his business relationships were tracked over thirty years.
Patrick Edward Reilly's real estate career seems to have had three phases ~ all gleaned from the advertisements he placed in local newspapers.
Phase One:
During the first phase (1834-1849), P.E. maintained a rent-office
in Claregalway and seems to have been working on his own.
There are eight properties listed in this period from 1834-1849
and for six of them, PE lists his office in Claregalway.
In this first one, he is working with Edward Reilly from Claremorris.
I am not sure if Edward Reilly of Claremorris is related to P.E but he might be.
If PE named his first son after his paternal grandfather, as is traditionally done, P E's father would have been named Edward..... or this could be his older brother.
Research is still in progress
Here are the remaining ads
published in this first phase:
Vicar Croft
In 1843, from his office in Claregalway, he
leased properties in Counties Clare & Galway in cooperation with land
agent, R.S. Guinness, 2 Kildare Street in Dublin. (R S Guinness went bankrupt
in 1849 when his business collapsed.)
William-street, Galway
A Farm in the Burren near Kilfenora
In the next ad, Major Macnamara of Doolin
(Ennistymon) first appears as a landowner-client. This is in 1848 and P.E.
divides his office time between Claregalway & Ennistymon.
Clearly, something happened to make him move his office from
Claregalway and closer to the Ennistymon House.
Perhaps, he was developing a business relationship with the
Macnamara family at this time.
In 1848, he listed Wellpark near Galway City which had been in the Macnamara family since 1806 and where Francis Macnamara had died in 1821.
Here is Wellpark today -
Wellpark, Galway
An exception to my theory is this entry for Taylor's Hill.
The next year (1849), his adverts indicate a partnership with the
Major & his brother, Captain Francis MacNamara of Ennistymon House.
He now lists his office in Ennistymon AND Claregalway.
.
Spring Park
The two real estate ads placed in 1850 further indicates PE's
growing relationship with Ennistymon House and the MacNamara family.
Phase Two:
It seems that he might have withdrawn from real estate for the ten years between 1850 and 1860. I did not find any of his ads during this period.
But, at the time, he was very busy in other pursuits which we will describe in detail in some future posts.
Basically, he was involved on the Board of Guardians, The Ennistymon Union, his Magistracy, The Farmers Society and other civic organizations.
Perhaps that is why his real estate business seems to have subsided during the 1850s.
Phase Three:
Then in 1860, the ads reappear! This is a very busy decade for PE's Real Estate career.
With one exception during this time, his contact location is “Rent-Office, Ennistymon”. ((Records show that, in 1863, P.E. Reilly began working as Land Agent for Col MacNamara managing his extensive estates in County Clare)).
Coast Guard Station
Sandfield
Glebe
In 1864, after living at Moher Lodge since 1829, he &
Elizabeth move to a new residence called Woodpark.
With one exception, we see that he lists his office at Woodpark.
This is an advertisement for Moher Lodge.
Patrick Edward Reilly died of Haempolegia ~ paralysis of one
side of the body ~ on May 14, 1872, two years after his wife.
His death record states that his youngest son, Henry, was at his side at Woodpark House when he passed.
It is through reading these published advertisements that we get a sense of Patrick Edward Reilly’s widespread and diversified business acumen during Ireland's darkest time.
The devastating an Gorta Mór - The Great Hunger ~ ravished the
country from 1845-1852.
Something that perhaps explains our grandfather's uncomfortable
relationship with his financial legacy.
EPILOGUE
History gives a nation its bearing on what it is and how its people are affected by what has happened in the past.
Its kings and queens, its wars - with victories and defeats - these all mold a nation’s culture into the way it views itself in the present.
In the same way, a family history presents how a family has survived and come to terms with the great social and cultural experiences of the ages.
We hope these stories will give each member of our family a foundation and, in some small way, explain how we came to be what we are today.
Hopefully, through these vignettes, our future generations will gain a knowledge of the energy and dynamism, the loves and hates, the errors and mistakes, the victories and failures, the struggles and successes that make us what we are.
Our family history presents a fascinating read - and, hopefully, some lessons to be learned in the process.
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